I’ve decided to pick up Struthless’ Alphabet Superset Challenge.

The idea is to spend the next 26 weeks working on art that fits into my specific theme and guidelines, creating a piece for each letter of the alphabet. Initially, I was going to make a post for each week… but I quickly learned that that was going to be overwhelming. So I’ve decided that I’ll do a post on the “recovery weeks” every 4-6 weeks as a review of everything I’ve been working on. This entry will include planning weeks 1-2 because it turns out I have a lot to say about the art.

If you’re interested in following along in this series, I’ll be adding the links to each part in the navigation below as they are posted, OR you can follow me here on WordPress or by email subscription.

1. Weeks 1 – 2: Prep Work and Planning	4. Weeks 11 – 16: I to N
2. Weeks 3 – 6: A to D	5. Weeks 17 – 21: O to T
3. Weeks 7 – 10: E to H	6. Weeks 22 – 27: U to Z

The website provides 2 worksheets to work through for the first couple of weeks, but I wanted to put it in my sketchbook. If you want the worksheets to better understand what I’m talking about head to the website linked above, though everything is either understandable (at least to me) or copied down.

Week 1

Week 1’s worksheet helps us decide the theme of our project, and constraints in medium, style, communication, and output. The idea is to give us focus throughout the project, especially for those of us who take part in creating under all sorts of different mediums, genres, etc. Struthless explains in his video that sometimes we reach for success… but stretch ourselves thin and inconsistently. It’s hard to be good at everything all at once, but putting your effort into something specific can help you improve very efficiently.

^{The taped-in page to the right is actually a pre-created list of potential words for each letter. I don’t want to post it because it’s incomplete and I’m still debating some choices. Also, that’d ruin the surprise!}

The theme of this project is very important to me. I believe that good, accessible sex education is important for everyone, and we’ve done a terrible job at it. I don’t expect to save the world one sticker at a time. But my hope is that every time my stickers make it to a water bottle or a laptop and it’s seen in public someone learns from it, or feels encouraged by it. So my theme constraint is Sex Education and Positivity.

Now, I know the point of this project is to set constraints and focus myself, but I am a mixed media artist. I’ve decided to restrict myself to illustrative mediums for the main illustration. This cuts out toy customization, refurbishing, sculpting, vinyl, jewelry, and any long-term projects that take time, or from trying new media. I’ve allowed myself the option of digital, but I’ve already done a piece this way and I don’t like it, so I’m hoping to restrict the digital aspects to clean up, colour editing, and adding text… because you’ve seen my writing. And now is not the time to try a new art ;)

My style constraints limit me to avoiding black when necessary, using pastels and bright playful colours, and aiming for a cute, softer style.

My communication and output are less interesting. They’re just the places I will post and what I need to have in order to post it.

Week2

Week 2 was very motivational. It also followed a worksheet on the website. Its goal was to put me in a positive mindset to finish this challenge unlike all of the other challenges I’ve done. Making it contribute to my art business has really helped me aim for a good finished product once a week, but sometimes you still need a little push of inspiration. This week helped me figure out what would push me, asking us for inspo in everything from media, straight down to someone who undermines us. Finishing this project would be Amazing. It would be one of the only drawing challenges I’ve ever completed, and ironically it’s more work than any of the other challenges I’ve tried. That’s why I really love the “Rut Rules” section. These are self-care things I need to think about more often. Because drawing makes my every day better. Creativity makes my life better.

My inspirations tend to form around animated movies with unique styles and visions, so I intend to actually read some of the art books I’ve collected over the years. In my Rut Rules, I mention journaling as a First Action to help me work. I find that when I struggle to draw in my sketch journal, if I write about my day or draw something from it I don’t want to stop filling my pages. I will jump back and forth adding to pages or continuing forward. It has already helped me drum up some ideas for the weeks I’ve already completed.

My real challenge is in my distractions. I often find myself scrolling social media, avoiding work by providing other artists with help and feedback. I want to scale back on social media and put more into my art and my business.

These pages had some interesting questions to answer and I found them unique, even if at the moment I do not feel their value yet.

Week 2 also required a letter called the 27th Letter. Mine is usually taped to this page, but I removed it for scanning. It will likely not be shared.

The Art!

That’s it for Alphabet Superset Weeks 1 – 2. At this moment in time we’re currently working on D. So when that art is completed I’ll upload my next Sketch Journal entry. I can’t wait to show you what I’ve completed so far, but if you’re unwilling to wait I’ve already posted the art onto my deviantArt, social media, and my Redbubble account for purchase.

I really look forward to seeing how I grow as an artist throughout this challenge, both internally and in skill. I want this project to really push my skills and hope to choose pieces that impress both you and me.

Don’t forget to check out the Alphabet Superset website if you’re excited to give this challenge a try for yourself.